Senior Adrianna Nora (Stillwater, Minn.) and sophomore Hannah Tapp (Stewartville, Minn.) have been named to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team, announced today by the conference office. This is the first preseason laurels for both individuals.

Nora, a 6-foot, 3-inch right side hitter, completed an outstanding junior season with the Gophers in 2013. Transferring to the University of Minnesota from Baylor last year, Nora made the most of her opportunity. Playing in 93 sets and 31 matches, Nora became an All-America honorable mention and an All North Region selection. She ranked fourth on the team in kills (218), kills per set (2.34) and hit .303 as a junior. She established 254.5 points last year, including 2.76 points per set, while also holding 0.73 blocks per set.

Tapp, a 6-foot, 2-inch middle blocker, added a stellar rookie season last year for the Gophers. As a freshman, Tapp was a 35-match starter, produced 122 kills and hit .404 en route to Freshman All-Big Ten honors. Her blocking abilities helped Minnesota become the second-best blocking team in the Big Ten as she individually ranked fifth in the league with 1.29 blocks per set. She capped off her rookie season hitting .750 against Radford in the NCAA First Round, .450 against Colorado in the Second Round and .429 against Stanford in the Sweet 16.

Along with the duo being named Preseason All-Big Ten, the University of Minnesota will enter the season ranked 12th, announced by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. The Big Ten Conference had a strong showing in the national polls with six of the top 12 slots going to league teams. The Big Ten Conference also released its Preseason Coaches Poll, with the Gophers ranked seventh.

Minnesota starts the season on Aug. 29 when it hosts Louisville, Notre Dame and Wisconsin for the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Wisconsin and Louisville will begin the tournament at 4:30 p.m., followed by the Minnesota/Notre Dame match up at 7 p.m. On Aug. 30. Wisconsin and Notre Dame will compete at 4 p.m., followed by a 7 p.m. Gopher/Louisville match.